Xue Shen deliberately did not inform the garrison in advance. When they arrived, the garrison was filthy and chaotic, with old, weak and disabled soldiers gathered together drinking and playing cards, showing no military discipline whatsoever.
Even Qi Zhong, a eunuch who cared nothing for military affairs, was dumbfounded by the sight: "This, this is outrageous!"
Xue Shen was not surprised at all. He spread his hands helplessly and said, "The Xu family father and son colluded with Cai Wenxuan and left behind such a mess. We have no money and no people. I am willing to clean up the mess, but I really don't know where to start."
"Supervisor Qi has witnessed it all today. If the Xizhou army is composed of such old, weak, sick, and disabled men with no fighting spirit, they will be utterly powerless to resist in the event of war. I hope that when Supervisor Qi returns to the capital, he will truthfully report the situation to His Majesty and send an honest and capable person to Xizhou to reorganize the military and political affairs."
Qi Zhong's expression changed slightly. Who in the court would be willing to take on such a mess?
He chuckled and replied perfunctorily, "I will report the truth to His Majesty, but surely we can't all have over 100,000 soldiers and more than 20 garrison posts in Xizhou?"
Xue Shen didn't take it seriously: "As for the truth, Supervisor Qi can go and see for himself."
Throughout the day, the two ran around to nearly ten military outposts, all of which were lax and lacked any military discipline.
Qi Zhong frowned. Having served Emperor Cheng'an for so many years, he naturally understood the hidden dangers of the lax military preparedness in Xizhou.
To be honest, the government has been suppressing military generals for a long time. Only the border troops that need to defend against foreign enemies are still somewhat effective, while other local troops are not much better off.
He just didn't expect Cai Wenxuan and the Xu family to be so bold. The border between Tibet and the Northern Rong people was separated by only one wall. Under the threat of invasion from both sides at any time, they actually dared to let the border troops become so lazy.
When Qi Zhong learned that Xue Shen had killed the governor and garrison commander of Xizhou, he originally wanted to use the pretext of garrisoning troops to seize Xue Shen's power. He planned to send a memorial to the emperor, which would be considered a great achievement for him.
After all, Xizhou was a strategically important military town and could not fall into the hands of the ambitious King of Qin.
But now, looking at the state of the garrison, his previous plans began to waver.
Taking on such a mess would be entirely beneficial to him. If nothing went wrong, he could at least gain some credit with the officials, but if anything went wrong, he couldn't bear the responsibility.
So when he returned to the governor's mansion that night, he pretended to be serious and said, "I never expected that Cai Wenxuan and the Xu family father and son would be so audacious as to neglect even the border troops' training. When I get back to the capital, I will definitely give them a good dressing down!"
Xue Shen smiled and said, "After inspecting the garrison, Supervisor Qi should understand my predicament. I was just worried about this. The remnants of the Northern Rong have been wiped out, and I have completed the tasks assigned by the Emperor. It is almost time for me to return to the capital. However, I have not received a reply to the memorials I sent out. Fortunately, Supervisor Qi has arrived. Even if you are supervising the army for His Majesty, it is just right to entrust the important military and political affairs of Xizhou to you now."
Qi Zhong naturally refused, saying, "I am just a eunuch, how would I know about these important military and political matters? Since Your Highness is in Xizhou, it is naturally best to leave it to Your Highness. I will be returning to the capital to report to His Majesty soon."
Upon hearing this, Xue Shen's expression darkened: "Neither of us can stay in Xizhou for long. We can only send another messenger back to the capital at an urgent speed to request the appointment of a new prefect as soon as possible."
Qi Zhong readily agreed, but in his heart he was already planning how to report back to Emperor Cheng'an so that he could leave this place of trouble as soon as possible.
*
However, Qi Zhong's plan was well-thought-out, but man proposes, God disposes. Just as he had been in Xizhou for four or five days and was preparing to return to the capital to receive his orders, the Northern Rong troops suddenly reached the border of Xizhou.
When Qi Zhong heard the news, he jumped up in shock: "What? The Northern Rong people have attacked?"
Xue Shen's expression remained completely calm. He said in a composed tone, "The King of Beirong has recovered from his injuries and, upon hearing that I happened to be in Xizhou, led his troops to attack, intending to avenge himself."
"You've recovered from your injuries so quickly?" Qi Zhong asked, his face ashen. "Does Your Highness have any chance of defeating the Northern Rong people?"
Xue Shen said, "The King of Beirong is determined to avenge his previous humiliation. This time, he has gathered 150,000 troops and is besieging the city. Xizhou has enough troops, plus the troops I brought, to only have 100,000 at most."
"As for the strength of the Xizhou border army, I'm sure Supervisor Qi has already seen it. When the Northern Rong besieged the capital, I was able to win with fewer troops only because the surprise attack was effective. Now that the Northern Rong are well-prepared, if we face them head-on, our chances of winning are only fifty-fifty."
"What should we do?" Qi Zhong was so anxious that he paced back and forth. Then his eyes suddenly lit up and he said, "I will ride back to the capital as fast as I can to inform the Emperor."
Xue Shen glanced at him casually, a look of concern on his face, and said, "Is Supervisor Qi in such a hurry to return to the capital because he's worried about suffering a defeat and wants to leave first?"
Qi Zhong did indeed have this thought in mind, but after being ruthlessly exposed, he still awkwardly laughed and said, "How could that be? I was just planning to return to the capital in the next few days anyway, and I just wanted to take the military favor back with me."
Xue Shen chuckled: "So it turns out I misunderstood Supervisor Qi. That's good."
“The Northern Rong people are currently challenging us outside the city. Since the supervising officer is here, he can come with me to the city wall to oversee the battle.”
Qi Zhong certainly didn't want to go. He valued his life highly, and the battlefield was a dangerous place where swords and spears had no eyes. If he were to get hurt, it would be a huge loss. But Xue Shen was staring at him intently, and if he simply said he wouldn't go, he would have a hard time explaining himself.
Therefore, after hesitating for a long time, Qi Zhong reluctantly followed Xue Shen up the city wall to supervise the battle.
Beyond the Great Wall, the 150,000-strong army of the Northern Rong people stood in imposing array. The Northern Rong King dispatched a fierce general, and when Xue Shen and his men arrived, the enemy was already challenging them to battle beneath the city walls.
The soldiers guarding the city wall made way for the two as they approached.
Xue Shen and Qi Zhong stood side by side on the city wall, looking down at the Northern Rong army below.
Qi Zhong, as Emperor Cheng'an's trusted eunuch, had always lived a life of luxury and ease. These battles and killings had nothing to do with him. Now, standing on the city wall, watching the Northern Rong people's ferocious faces and aggressive shouts, his legs couldn't help but feel weak.
But Xue Shen, standing beside him, remained expressionless, so he could only force himself to pretend he didn't care.
Upon learning of their arrival, Pang Lai rushed over to see Xue Shen: "Your Highness, shall we engage in battle?"
Xue Shen glanced at him and said unhurriedly, "The garrison is full of old, weak, sick and disabled people. How can they fight? Fortunately, we have brought 50,000 troops with us. We can just guard the city walls well. The Northern Rong people can't get through."
Pang Lai paused for a moment upon hearing his words, then glanced at Qi Zhong beside him, vaguely understanding something, and said nothing more.
Meanwhile, the Northern Rong people below, having finished their challenge, saw that Xue Shen had no intention of responding, so they brought out ladders to forcibly climb the city wall.
Qi Zhong was so frightened when he saw the Northern Rong people carrying tall cloud ladders and setting them up on the city wall that he instinctively took a step back.
Xue Shen glanced at him, a mocking smile playing on his lips.
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